European Publishers Say the EU is Giving In to AI - Publishers Daily

I'm getting a headache from all the AI chaos.

Panzer found this news release at the Publishers Daily site.

 

According to the release, organizations representing millions of European creatives have complained to the European Commission about the European Union AI Act. The post includes a link to more information about the organizations complaints.

 

Panzer says, "You need to read the release and follow the link to get the full information about the complaints."

 

Note: This is a shortish post. Bring a cup of tea to drink while you read. If , plan to follow the link and read more information about the complaints you'll need to bring more to snack on.

 

To read the post tootle over to AI Act 

Amazon Faces Fresh Clampdown With Germany and UK Security - Bloomberg

Today's trip into the Catosphere took Panzer to the Bloomberg site. With a little digging in the posts there our inquisitive kitty boy found one about Amazon.

 

Let's see what they do.

According to the post by Stephanie Bodoni and Katharine Gemmell, Amazon is now being scrutinized by Germany and the UK for signs of anti-competitive behavior. Germany's Federal Cartel Office and the UK's Competition and Markets Authority join the EU's European Commission in investigating Amazon.

 

Panzer says, "Hmm ... This should be interesting to watch what happens."

 

Note: This is a long-medium length post. Bring a cup of tea and two chocolate chip cookies (biscuits) for today's reading selection.

 

To read the post tootle over to Amazon and German Regulator

Europe accuses Amazon of misusing third-party retail data, opens new 'Buy Box' investigation - GeekWire

 As Panzer was tootle around in the Catosphere today, he decided to make a stop at the GeekWire site. With a little digging in the posts our inquisitive kitty boy found one about Amazon and the company's European sales dealings.

 

According to the post by Todd Bishop, the EU's European Commission is investigating if Amazon gives itself or those who use its services an advantage with the company's 'Buy Box.' The Commission is also investigating Prime members' use of the 'Buy Box.' If the Commission determines Amazon is in the wrong, the company could be fined 10 percent of its global annual revenue. There are links to other information about the Commission's investigation included in the post.

 

 They decide if they get the money?

Panzer says, "Hmm ... This little kitty is confused. ... Mom is an Amazon Prime member and she buys stuff on Amazon. Since she pays Amazon to be a Prime member, Amazon gives her special prices and special deals. Sometimes what she orders is shipped from Amazon fulfillment centers and sometimes it's shipped directly from the seller's company.  What is Amazon doing wrong with Prime memberships?"

Note: This is a short medium post. Bring a cup of tea and a muffin for today's reading selection. If you plan to follow the included links, bring a thermos of cocoa, four muffins, four chocolate chip cookies (biscuits), and two brownies.

To read the post tootle over to Europe Commission vs Amazon

 

 

Luxembourg challenges EU order to recover tax from Amazon - Reuters

10 Days Until Christmas

Panzer has been a busy kitty today helping Mom put up the Christmas decorations, so his trip into the Catosphere was a quick one. Our speedy kitty boy hurried to the Reuters site. With a little digging he found a post about Amazon and Luxembourg.

According to the post composed by the Reuters staff, Luxembourg is appealing the European Union's recent order to them to collect 250 million euros from Amazon for back taxes. The European Commission asserts Luxembourg gave special tax treatment to Amazon, which Luxembourg denies. The appeal will be heard in the General Court in Luxembourg. The post states Luxembourg is already appealing an EU tax collection order case against another company.

Panzer says, "This little kitty doesn't understand how the European Union can come into a member country and tell that country who to collect taxes from and how much to collect in taxes. Does the EU get part or all of the tax money? Are members of the EU no longer sovereign countries?"

Note: This is a short post. Bring a cup of tea for today's reading selection.

To read the post tootle over to Amazon Luxembourg tax

EU Lawmakers Add Spotify and iTunes to Ban on Geo-Blocking - The Digital Reader

Panzer was tootling around in the Catosphere when he heard booing and hissing coming from ahead of the Panzermobile. Following all the noise took him to The Digital Reader site. There our big brave kitty found a post about geo-blocking and the European Union.

According to the post by site owner Nate Hoffelder, the European Union (EU) Commission voted to ban geo-blocking. Our traveling kitty wanted to what geo-blocking is. Reading the post he believes it's when an online retailer redirects you to one of their shopping sites in your own country, instead of the cheaper site in a different country you wanted to go to. The EU also added retailers who sell copyrighted materials to the ban. This means sites such as Spotify and iTunes can no longer redirect you to purchase your membership/service in your own country. Needless to say, this does not bode well for online retailers.

I'll never understand humans.

Panzer says, "Hmm ... Almost at the bottom of the post is the example that you could buy a product from an online retailer in another country even if there's no delivery to your country. Umm ... Why would you do that? It would cost you a small fortune to get it to you ... If you could even get it from the other country."

Note: This is a medium length post. Bring a cup of tea and a muffin for today's reading selection.

To read the post, tootle over to European Union lawmakers

Under pressure from national governments, Commission lowers VAT rates for ebooks - EurActiv.com

I am so tired after that trip.

Today Panzer made a l-o-n-g trip in the Catosphere. Our adventurous kitty traveled all the way to the EurActiv.com site. There he found a post about the EU VAT on ebooks.

According to the post by Catherine Stupp, the European Commission has proposed to allow ebooks and online newspapers and news services to be sold with the same 7.6 percent VAT rate as paper books and paper newspapers. EU countries can accept the new VAT rate proposal or not as they determine. The proposal will not become effective until Members of the European Parliament and the respective national governments agree to it.

Panzer says, "Maybe EU ebook sales will  get better since the Commission is getting rid of the 19.9 percent VAT on ebooks."

Note: This is a l-o-n-g post. Bring a cup of tea and one-and-a-half muffins for today's reading selection.

To read the post, tootle over to Vat rates

European Commission Investigating Amazon

Hmmmv. Protect your own business.

Panzer hit the Catosphere at Cat Warp Speed today. Our kitty boy stopped at the Publishers' Weekly to dig around at the site looking for news for you.

According to a post by Jim Milliot, Amazon is in the European crosshairs again. The European Commission is investigating if Amazon is preventing competition from European ebook distributors through Amazon's contracts with ebook publishers.

Panzer says, "If it's not Amazon's taxes, it's their publisher contracts. What are they going to investigate next?"

Note: This is a l-o-n-g post, so bring a b-i-g cup of tea.

To read the post, tootle over to Amazon Ebook Probe